Department of Botany
Date of Establishment of the Department: 1st February, 1967
The department of Botany at this University started functioning with effect from February 1, 1967. It was the fourth department in the Faculty of Science being started after Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry. The work for its establishment and development was initiated by Prof. S. S. Bir assisted by a team of dedicated teachers. Presently department has one Professor Emeritus & Life Fellow, 7 Professors, 2 Associate Professors and 5 Assistant Professors. The department caters to PG teaching to M. Sc. Botany, M. Sc. Hon's in Botany (Five Year Integrated Course), M. Phil and Ph. D. students. In M. Sc. Botany the students have a choice for opting dissertation/specialization in crop genetics and plant breeding or plant pathology after passing M. Sc. Part I. For the students of M. Sc. Hon's in Botany (FYIC) there is an exit option after 3 years and such students will be entitled for the award of B. Sc. Hon's in Botany and those continuing for five years will be eligible for the award of M. Sc. Hons. Degree. For all classes, semester system was introduced from session 2003-2004. So far, 71 students have been awarded Ph. D. Degrees. For different courses being run by the Department the eligibility is as follows:
- M. Sc. Botany 50% Marks in B. Sc. With Botany as one of the subject.
- M. Sc. Hons. in Botany (Five Year Integrated Course) 50% Marks in 10+2 with Botany as one of the subject.
- M. Phil Admission through Entrance Test.
- Ph. D. Admission through Entrance Test.
Most of the students of this department have taken up teaching as profession. Some of them have gone in for higher studies, research jobs, administrative services (I.R.S., I.F.S., P.C.S., etc.) and some even have floated their own enterprises..
Significant Achievements
- Another important feature of the department is its well laid out 12 hectare Botanical Garden and 10 hectare Plant Conservatory with special features of Tropical House, Cactus House, Fern House, Poly House, Net House and experimental area for growing plants for research being carried in the department.
- Cytomorphological diversity of flowering plants has been explored from the forests of Pachmarhi hills ( Central India ), Nilgiri and Palni hills ( South India ) and N. W. Himalayas including trans-Himalayan cold deserts.
- Exploration and evaluation of phytochemical diversity of some important medicinal plants.
- Cytotaxonomy of ferns has been carried out from Central India , South India and Eastern and Western Himalayas.
- The floras of Patiala , Sirmour, Chamba, Kullu districts have been published.
- Extensive and intensive cytological analysis has been carried out on legumes, composites, trees, weeds, grasses and plants belonging to Labiatae and Acanthaceae.
- Systematics of Basidiomycetes fungi with particular reference to order Agaricales and Aphyllophorales from Uttrakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab and Jammu & Kashmir have been carried out.
- Survey of post harvest diseases of fruits, vegetables and multi-purpose tree species of Punjab.
- Cultivation studies on the agro-waste materials have been carried out on commercially important mushrooms viz. Lentinus squarrosulus, L. conatus, L. torulosus, Calocybe indica and Pleurotus florida.
- Extensive studies on physiology, biochemistry and genetics of cyanobacterial and cyanophages have been made.
- Mechanism of akinete differentiation in cyanobacteria has been studied.
- Phytoremediation potential of Azolla and blue green algae has been studied.
- The department has well established and internationally recognized Herbarium and Museum, having more than 5000 plant specimens. Another important aspect of the department is that it has a rare Botanical Photo Gallery.
- Another important feature of the department is its well laid out 12 hectare Botanical Garden and 10 hectare Plant Conservatory with special features of Tropical House, Cactus House, Fern House, Poly House, Net House and experimental area for growing plants for research being carried in the department.
